Banks Peninsula seafloor mapping — Iongairo project
Iongairo is a collaborative project to deepen our understanding of coastal marine ecosystems around Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū/Banks Peninsula. Interactive maps provide new insights into what lies beneath the waves.
Iongairo is a partnership between papatipu rūnanga of Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū, the Department of Conservation, and us, with the University of Otago serving as the project’s science partner.
‘Iongairo’ represents the relationship between Papatūānuku and Tangaroa in Te Ao Māori — signifying the special relationship between the whenua/land and the moana/ocean.
After several years exploring marine habitats in this culturally, ecologically and economically important area, the Iongairo partners have delivered the most comprehensive seafloor and habitat maps in Waitaha/Canterbury to-date.
Seafloor maps
Iongairo interactive maps document the geological and biological characteristics of seafloor habitats around Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū/Banks Peninsula.
Information available via the interactive map transforms our ability to make informed coastal planning and environmental management decisions.
The maps are the result of extensive fieldwork and modelling, and will help rūnanga, communities and agencies make more informed decisions about ecosystem management.
View the seafloor maps
Preview of bathymetry map
About the Iongairo project
In 2021, Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) conducted hydrographic survey work around Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū/Banks Peninsula for navigational shipping purposes. The survey extended along the coast from Awaroa/Godley Head to Birdlings Flat, including Akaroa Harbour, and out to five kilometres offshore.
Through a financial commitment by us (in the 2021-31 Long-Term Plan) and the Department of Conservation, and with support from rūnanga, the hydrographic survey was expanded to include important shallow water (<10 m) areas of the coastline from Birdlings Flat to Goat Point that would otherwise not have been mapped.
Combining this additional work with LINZ’s survey provided an opportunity to leverage funding to improve rūnanga, community and agency understanding and management of seafloor habitats and ecosystems around Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū/Banks Peninsula.
Outputs from the Iongairo project represent the most detailed information on any coastal marine environment in Waitaha/Canterbury. The extensive fieldwork has generated a rich pool of environmental data.
